ORIGINALLY WRITTEN DON RATZLAFF
We add our affirmation to the official proclamation recently passed by the city council naming Raymond F. Wiebe Hillsboro’s “historian emeritus.” The amount of time and energy Wiebe, now 80, has invested in gathering and recording information about Hillsboro’s past-for little personal gain-is beyond comprehension.
He and his brother, David, for so many years the director of the local museum complex once known as the Adobe House, have done more to keep the past alive and accessible than perhaps anyone else.
Raymond’s most public contribution to the community’s historical treasury was his 1985 book: “Hillsboro: The City on the Prairie.” This volume, now essentially out of print, contains an amazing wealth of information and photos about Hillsboro’s start and growth over its first 100 years. Those lucky enough to possess a copy have a wonderful keepsake.
Not everyone appreciates the value of history, and few can fathom why anyone would spend so much time and resources to pursue it as Raymond Wiebe has. But people like him-like the facts, stories and anecdotes they pursue-too often aren’t fully appreciated until they are pass beyond our reach. -DR
